Last updated: Friday 23 October 2020
Latest veg scheme Collection Point updates
Latest farmers' market updates. Which stalls to expect this Saturday.
Volunteering at our growing sites
Operational changes to keep you safe.
We encourage you to wear a mask to keep you, other customers and stallholders safe. Please respect the 2 metre distancing rules. There is hand sanitiser at the gate and a hand-washing station inside the market.
We all enjoy meeting friends at the market, so we're really sorry to say this, but please shop as quickly as possible and don't stop to chat! Be mindful of the queue of people waiting outside. The queue is shorter after 12pm.
Don't bring children if you can avoid it and leave bicycles outside the market. Please leave the market before eating takeaway food.
If you'd like to receive weekly email updates about the farmers' market and other GC activities, please use the Subscribe to our mailing list box at the bottom of this page.
Provisional stall list for Saturday 24 October:
* Galileo Organic Farm is happy to accept email orders until 12 noon each Wednesday. Orders should be collected from the market between 12 noon and 2.30pm on Saturday.
PaMa and Hempen are not attending the farmers' market for now, but you can order from them online through these links: PaMa online shop and Hempen online shop.
Please log into your veg scheme account to book or cancel holidays, donate to the food credit scheme or to change your order. Why not make the most of the summer's gorgeous produce by trading up to a bigger bag for a few weeks?
Can't collect your bag? If you have to stay home, you're welcome to send a friend or neighbour to collect for you. Just make sure they have the collection instructions and padlock codes they need. Or join your local WhatsApp buddy group and ask a fellow veg scheme member to collect for you.
Wear a mask when collecting your veg - especially if you collect from a shop.
Keep us all safe by maintaining clean hands, and keeping a 2 metre distance from other people.
Please don't arrive early to pick up your veg bag. It will not be ready and you will be putting our staff and yourselves at risk.
As always, please let us know if you feel unsafe at any collection point, so we can address any issues.
If you are a member of the veg scheme and need to contact us, please email us.
Castle Climbing Centre
Green Lanes, N4 2HA
Collection times: Thursday 3pm - 9pm, Friday 9am - 9pm. Sorry we're not offering Saturday collection at the moment, Anyway, in warmer weather, it's best to collect your veg as early as possible. If someone is already collecting when you arrive, please wait outside and give them space.
Don't prop the doors open when you collect. Please respect the space, keep fire exits clear and remember to close the doors and gate when you leave, then wash your hands when you get home.
Please note: don’t be confused by the padlock to the right of the GC door, which gives access to a private Castle workspace. You can still open the left-hand door to access our cupboard using the keypad as usual.
Core Clapton
161 Northwold Road, Upper Clapton, E5 8RL
Collection times: Thursdays 3.30pm - 9pm, Fridays 8am - 5pm.
Collection times: Thursdays: 4.15pm - 7pm. Fridays: 2pm - 9pm. (Sorry, we're not offering Saturday collection. In warmer weather, the produce wilts quickly, so it's best to collect as early as you can.) Please collect your bags from the shed by going into the garden through the front entrance by the peace mural. Email us if you need a reminder of the padlock code.
e5 bakehouse - Closed for veg scheme collection
Mentmore Terrace, E8 3PH
UPDATE 29 April: The bakery is now baking again and offering a takeaway service with reduced hours. But we are NOT YET reopening it as a collection point. We'll let you know as soon as that changes.
Hackney City Farm
Hackney Road, E2 8QA
Collection times: Weds 6-8pm, Thurs 11am-7.30pm, Fri 11am-4pm. Get Loose unpackaged shop is also open during most of these hours.
We've heard that the main gate of farm is sometimes closed during our collection times. When Frizzante cafe is open (from 12pm on Thursday and Friday), you can go through the cafe to collect your bags. As you walk into the farm, take the small gate on the left into the garden, then turn right into the cafe. Walk through to the door on the right, which will take you out to the yard where you'll find your bags.
On Wednesdays, please only go into the veg collection room two at a time. We are not selling bread and eggs to minimise queuing times. You will be able to access the veg cupboards on Thursday and Friday.
Hackney Downs Studios
Amhurst Terrace, E8 2BT
Collection times: Wednesdays 8pm-10pm, Thursdays 8am-8pm; Fridays 8am-8pm.
The swap box is back!
Hatch
8 Mackintosh Lane, Homerton, E9 6AB
Collection times: Wednesdays 7.30pm-10pm, Thursdays 8am-10pm, Fridays 8am-10pm.
St Mary Stoke Newington
Stoke Newington Church Street, N16 9ES
Collection times: Wednesdays 4pm – 9pm; Thursdays 9am – 9pm.
Mother Earth Newington Green
103 Newington Green Road, N1 4QY
Collection times: Wednesdays 4pm – 6.30pm, Thursdays 11am – 6.30pm, Fridays 11am – 6.30pm.
The Old Fire Station
61 Leswin Road, N16 7NX
Collection times: Wednesdays 3.30pm-9pm (staffed 3.30pm-7.30pm), Thursdays 8am-9pm, Fridays 8am-5pm. At Wednesday's staffed bag pick-up, collect from the main Fire Station through the red double doors. We have taken the padlocks off the cupboard doors in the yard to minimise handling, but please do close the doors when you have taken your bags. We occasionally see foxes in the yard - and we don't want them to nibble your veg!
The swap box is back!
We're trialling bringing back the swap box at the OFS, after more than three-quarters of you asked for it in our recent survey. It will be in the hall during the Wednesday staffed collection, then outside the cupboards in the yard after that.
For those of you new to the scheme, the swap box gives you a chance to exchange an item in your bag that you don't want, for one that you do. Please swap all of a particular thing: eg all your bananas for the whole portion of onions in the box.
Organic & Natural
191 Lower Clapton Rd, E5 8EG
Collection times: Wednesdays 3pm-8pm, Thursdays 10am-8pm, Fridays 10am-8pm, Saturdays 10am-12pm.
Redmond Centre - Closed
The Redmond Centre is closed. We are delivering bags to the nearby Castle Climbing Centre instead.
Round Chapel Old School Rooms
Old School Rooms, 2 Powerscroft Road, E5 0PU
Collection times: Wednesdays 1pm-9pm, Thursday 8.30am-9pm, Friday 8.30am-5pm. Please bear with us and hold off collecting until 2pm if you can.
St John of Jerusalem
Lauriston Road, E9 7DH
Collection times: Thursdays 11am-7pm, Fridays 10am-7pm, Saturdays: 10am-1pm.
St Peter de Beauvoir
Northchurch Terrace, De Beauvoir Town, N1 4DA
Collection times: Thursdays 1pm-8.30pm; Fridays 8am-8.30pm.
Fill in our joining form here. If you'd like to sign up our waiting list to hear when places come up at our full collection points, please give us your details here.
We've stopped volunteering activity at Dagenham Farm and we can't welcome new volunteers to our Hackney sites as we don't want to put you at risk during this time. Sophie is working with a few regular, experienced volunteers by appointment only. We'll update this page if that changes. Or you can join our mailing list, through the link at the bottom of the page, for weekly updates on all our activities.
Growing Communities staff are working hard to protect our members, market customers, ourselves and our families from the Covid-19 virus
We’ve been taking extra precautions in our packing and delivery operations to minimise the risk of transmitting the virus.
Veg packing: All staff have been trained in Coronavirus hygiene. All staff wash hands before the pack starts and wear gloves while packing. Staff know not to touch their faces or phones during the packing. All staff wash hands according to official public health guidelines before and after eating or any breaks. We have minimised staff in the office to avoid unnecessary foot traffic during the pack. We’re quarantining your returned plastic bags to eliminate risk of contamination, and we have removed some swap boxes.
Veg delivery: The delivery van is cleaned when drivers change over and delivery staff have been trained in how to minimise the potential for virus transmission.
Market: We have spaced out the stalls to allow for quicker shopping and safe queuing. Stallholders are offering cardless transactions wherever possible and have their own hand sanitisers. We no longer offer samples of produce at the market. Please make use of the hand-washing facilities and sanitiser as you leave the market. We recommend wearing a mask while shopping.
Our farm and growing sites: Our growers are washing hands and tools regularly, cleaning gloves frequently and have been trained in Coronavirus hygiene.
Please help us! The veg scheme operates via public collection points so we ask you to take all precautions for public spaces including wearing a mask, bringing your own hand sanitiser or sanitiser wipes to wipe your hands after collecting your bags. Please remember to wash your hands after unpacking your veg (and fruit) at home as well as washing all fruit and veg before use as usual.
